Urbana Human Rights Commission tables proposal to reduce membership from nine to seven

The City of Urbana Human Rights Commission discussed a proposal on Sept. 16 to reduce the commission's required membership from nine to seven but agreed to table the matter for one month while staff confirms how city code and the commission's ordinance interact.

Carla, a staff member with the Office of Human Rights and Equity, said staffing and recruitment have made it difficult to fill nine seats and that the proposal was intended to improve the commission's ability to meet quorum and carry out work. "It's just a discussion. It's not required by law or anything like that," Carla said during the meeting.

Peter Resnick, commissioner, said he was surprised by an attorney's interpretation that the city code could override the commission's ordinance and said he had "no particular strong feeling" about lowering the number but would accept the attorney's guidance. Commissioners debated whether changing the ordinance would materially affect quorum: staff said quorum currently is calculated based on the number of seated members, which means with six seated members a quorum would be four, and if nine were seated the quorum would be five.

Several commissioners said recruitment has been difficult and that a smaller required membership could make filling roles easier; others said retaining the current number preserves broader representation if more applicants later apply. The commission asked staff to obtain a formal opinion from the city clerk and city attorney, and to have the clerk present on the Illinois Open Meetings Act and any related procedural considerations at a future meeting.

No formal motion to refer a change to City Council was taken at this meeting. The commission voted to postpone further action on the question for one month so that staff can provide the requested legal clarification and outline the process if the commission decides to send a recommendation to City Council.